My PT Experiences

[neis]

Won't go through my entire history, but I've seen 3 PT's for perineal pain/burning, nerve crawling/itching in anus and genitals, plus intermittent penile pain. Kaiser's(my insurance) PT was clueless when it came to pain referral from trigger points. She said to sit on a spiky ball she gave me and massage the perineum externally with it. I intuitively knew this was a waste of time, and moved on.

I was given Stephanie Prendergast's name from Dr. Wise when I requested names of PT's he'd recommend. I met with her, gave her my complete history, then went to work on finding trigger points. She found none that referred pain to my penis and perineum, but suggested I keep coming back, and worked areas only around my anus and lower abs saying these refer to the perineum. Never got relief, and after 6 sessions at $200/sessions I gave up feeling I was being scammed with false hope when told I'd need to do it a year to realize the benefits. She also refused to give me any home stretching or internal work exercises saying it was far too early in the treatment for that. After reading more on this site I realized there were many more potential trigger point to the perineum that Stephanie never touched, namely the superior portion of the Anterior Levator Ani, and the Obturator Internus.

I asked Dr. Wise again if he'd refer me to Tim Sawyer, his PT for the Stanford clinic. He obliged and gave me Tim's number and email address. I saw Tim today, went over my history, then went to work finding trigger points. Did the potential external triggers first, and found nothing in particular that set me off, though I have some TrP's that if worked could help some lower back issues. Then he went internal, and struck gold. He first hit the superior portion of the Levator Ani on my left side and it sent all the symptoms to my perineum and penis. He labeled this TrP a 2+ out of 3 on intensity. He said he barely touched it. He worked all areas and also found TrP's 2+ out of 3 in my left Obturator Internus, which he said could really effect the pudendal nerve when tight, which may be the reason I have the nerve crawling and itching. There were other tight areas, but all 1 out of 3. My right side wasn't as bad, which corroborates my mostly left side symptoms for the last 1.5+ years. Being so aware of my fluctuating pain levels over the past 1.5 years, I knew when I left his office that my chronic low level burn in my perineum was perceptively diminished. He said he wasn't surprised given the TrP's found and worked. This is the first time in my chronic prostatitis / chronic pelvic pain syndrome journey that anything has been identified which explains my symptoms. It's what I've been after, and now have a course of action to relieve my symptoms. I strongly suggest that anyone going through expensive PT with little reward see Tim for a second opinion. He' more knowledgeable, methodical, and talented than the others I saw, and he's a real pleasant guy. I'll keep everyone posted on my progress.

[yorkere]

Neis:

Haven't seen any further reports from you on your progrees with these treatments. What has been happening?

As well, if you're still seeing your PT, could you inquire whether he knows of any knowledgeable and effective colleagues in the Southern California area?

[neis]

Yorkere, I took another path and put PT on the sidelines for a while. I elected to have three injections into my prostate by Dr. Bahn in So. Cal over a six week period. The injectable included antibiotics, antifungals, and anti-inflammatories. I've been doing much better since these shots, but certainly not cured. I've had 3 pain free weeks end yesterday when I took a run for the first time in a long while, got home, sat in a bad position and felt a shift in my perineum, and have had off and on burning since then. I really thought I had this thing beat after such a substantial time with no pain. I'm so much better off since the shots with the nerve crawling and intense itching gone, and no more penile pain, but would love to get rid of the perineal burning and occasional spasms. I'll probably go back to Tim shortly to work on those trigger points around my prostate.

BTW, sorry for the delayed response.

[yorkere]

neis:

Please excuse MY delayed response!!

Can you provide the location and phone number of Dr. Bahn? Although my situation apparently is much less severe than yours (at least for now), I'd be most interested in contacting and meeting with a Dr. who could help me as well...I wish there was some way members of this forum could be notified when replies are posted; I have some difficulty in remembering where I am or was on this forum! If it'll help, my email is [email protected].

Many thanks!

[webslave]

Duke Bahn's details
http://www.pioa.org/bahn.html

To get email notifications of replies go here
ucp.php?i=prefs&mode=post

[yorkere]

Webslave:

Thanks for the information!

What do you think of this Doctor's approach? These injections are evidently for those who are desperate, and he says so right up front, at the bottom of his protocol for prostatitis....It looks quite horrific ti me.

[webslave]

There a lot of threads on that topic in this forum:
viewforum.php?f=8